Tears under the rain
by Corporal Levi
Summary: "Hibari sat by the phone, waiting for Yamamoto's call to pick him up from the hospital. Then he felt his presence outside their house…only to find the rain." Twelve moments of Yamamoto and Hibari's lives together from the beginning to the end. 8018.


**Warnings: OOC, slight bad language, brief sexual themes, Character death.**

**Author's Notes: In 'If you see him' I said my next fanfic would be 8018 fluff, didn't I? Hehe, woops. Sorry, this **_**was**_** going to be purely and only fluff, but then it started raining and…well, you can imagine XD Please don't mind the dates in the story, they do hold meaning, but I chose completely random times (I don't know when the characters were born) so if they don't make any sense please point it out and help me correct them or ignore them. Sorry if it seems rushed, I wanted to finish it fast D:**

**Disclaimer: I don't own KHR! Yet, that is.**

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**September 2, 2009

"You know, I think I kinda like you," 15-year-old Yamamoto declared nervously, but still maintained a bright smile. "Would you go out with me?"

A hit with a tonfa in his gut was the only thing he got as an answer. The tanned teen fell to his knees, clutching his stomach while trying to repress the painful feeling as he groaned. A single chestnut eye looked up to his only companion and saw the indifferent face of the head prefect looking down at him with his steel weapon raised. Yamamoto tried to laugh.

"Is…is t-that a no?"

"When you get stronger, I might reconsider it, herbivore," With that sentence finished, Hibari walked away, leaving a wide-eyed, smiling and hopeful teenager behind.

"He said 'when'…"

August 28, 2010

Steel-blue eyes widened greatly. Both his tonfas were tossed away from his reach while a cold, sharp edge of a sword was pointed at his throat. He inwardly cursed for lowering his guard, even if it was just for a second. The owner of the deadly weapon removed the sword, extending a hand to help the other one up.

After a moment of silence, the loser of the battle spoke.

"You have proven yourself worthy; I agree to go out with you, Yamamoto Takeshi."

Yamamoto smiled broadly and mentally cheered while doing a victory dance. It seemed that all those months of restless training finally paid off!

Hibari accepted the other's hand, only to be pulled up quickly as pair of chapped lips were crushed against his.

Afterwards, the initiator of the kiss had to deal with a broken nose.

January 8, 2011

"Ne, Hibari."

"Hn?"

"I love you."

The shorter male scoffed, his eyes never leaving the sunset before them. Hibari's pale skin seemed to glow, making it impossible to see that the faint redness of his cheeks was not caused by the sunlight. Yamamoto's smile didn't falter at that, though. He knew that it would take years for his feelings to be returned, but that didn't trouble him; in fact, that knowledge just made him want to keep on going even more.

"Love is for herbivores."

The baseball-lover chuckled. "That's not what you said last night~."

Yamamoto was really glad for his good reflexes, because as he saw the tonfa attacking aggressively the place he was just sitting at a second ago, he could not help but think that they came in handy when you were dating a violent carnivore.

"Don't worry," He laughed, not intimidated by the skylark's fury. "You'll love me too sooner or later. Just wait!"

"That will never happen." Hibari sneered, readying himself to fight the swordsman.

He sounded sure of that statement, so why did he felt a small tinge of uncertainty inside?

February 14, 2012

Yamamoto Takeshi knew that dating Hibari Kyouya came with a lot of responsibilities, to say the least. He had to be really careful of what he said and did in his boyfriend's presence, so one day he obliviously committed the mistake of complimenting Chrome's appearance at a Valentine's Day party and inviting her to dance when Hibari was watching.

"Wow, Chrome, you look beautiful!" Yamamoto had said, smiling brightly at the blushing girl.

"T-thank you, Yamamoto-san. I don't really think I look that good, though," She timidly said, playing with the end of her black dress with purple lily patterns. It reached just above her knees and her hair was also down, cascading her un-covered pale shoulders.

The Rain Guardian raised his eyebrows. "What are you saying? You are stunning! In fact, you look so nice that I want you to dance with me, what do you say?"

Chrome's face went a deep red color as she protested, raising her hands in front of her. "That's not a good idea..."

"C'mon, don't be shy!" He laughed, dragging the purple-eyed girl to the dance floor, completely unaware of the pair of eyes burning a hole in the back of his head.

"B-but…"

"See? It's not that bad!"

After dancing their hearts out, both teenagers finally went on separate ways: Chrome with Kyoko, Haru, I-Pin and Bianchi, and Yamamoto with Hibari.

The Cloud Guardian stiffened when his boyfriend sat beside him and placed an arm around his shoulders. The taller one sighed contently and laughed.

"God, I'm hungry! Dancing around for too long makes my stomach empty!" He exclaimed, patting his stomach. "Let's go get something to eat, Hibari!"

Hibari narrowed his eyes and rudely brushed Yamamoto's arm off him.

"Why don't you go ask the herbivorous vessel of Rokudo Mukuro?"

The swordsman blinked, confused. "The vessel…? Oh! You mean Chrome! Ha-ha!"

Hibari didn't even bother to glare at him as he stood up and walked away. Why was he in this stupid party again? Oh yeah, Yamamoto made him… Grunting lowly, he left the crowded place hurriedly…after glaring at a certain indigo-haired girl, of course.

Yamamoto tilted his head to the side in a curious manner. "What's his problem?"

Basil, who sat in front of him and saw the whole thing, only face palmed.

March 8, 2013

"Which one looks better: the hot pink one, or the fuchsia one?"

Hibari felt his eye twitch. Right now, the view of his so-called boyfriend comparing two dresses in each hand in front of him with a frown in his face as if he were solving a rather complicated math problem was not only embarrassing, but irritating too. What were they doing in a women's clothing store in the first place?

"Say, Hibari, which one would you choose?" What kind of question was that?

Closing his eyes and muttering something unintelligible under his breath, the steel-blue eyed teen responded, "They are both the same."

Yamamoto gasped dramatically and Hibari briefly looked up at the sky (or ceiling, in this case) as if to ask God what he had done for him to hate him that much.

"Nu-Uh! Can't you see the difference? Obviously hot pink is more…" He blabbed, making the shorter male wonder how the hell he knew something like that.

Besides, as Hibari looked at the other's shopping bag which contained a white, blue-hearts patterned T-shirt, a pair of shiny and bright leather boots, red ribbons and a box of cosmetics; he couldn't help but feel uneasy. Did Yamamoto have a secret kink for cross-dressing that he didn't know of? Where those clothes and make up for the baseball-lover? Or even worse, for Hibari?

Obviously the skylark didn't show it, but he was feeling a little panicked. Sometimes Yamamoto was capable of making him do stuff he didn't want to agree with; what if this was one of those cases? Just thinking about it made him pale. And then what would he do next? Take pictures, maybe? Or force him to strip tease for him? Or role-play? Or even–

"Hm, I think the hot pink would look better in Haru."

…What?

"I wasn't sure what she would like," Yamamoto started saying matter-of-factly, putting away the fuchsia dress. "It was rather easy to find something for Chrome, Sasagawa, I-Pin and Gokudera's sister, but sometimes Haru wears the silliest things, wouldn't you agree?"

The swordsman laughed and scratched the back of his neck.

Hibari blinked, slightly taken aback, and then felt the need to face palm. Of course, he dryly reminded himself, today was the International Women's Day! Not that he really cared, but his boyfriend always liked to buy gifts for his female friends in this day, which really explained a lot of this.

Still, though, he couldn't help but release a small sigh of relief.

June 23, 2014

"Ha-ha – Pops, meet Hibari Kyouya, my boyfriend. Hibari, meet my dad."

Yamamoto had to admit that when he thought he would introduce Hibari to his dad it would be in the middle of a decent dinner, or maybe in one of the many parties they organized in Takezushi, but his father walking in on them with half of their clothes missing and Hibari biting Yamamoto's neck hard enough for it to start bleeding was not in his expectations.

Yeah, not awkward at all.

Note the sarcasm.

Right now he was sitting in front of his uncomfortable-looking dad in a Takezushi's table. Hibari had left short after the incident, only exchanging a look with the older Yamamoto for a whole minute before exiting the room silently. Everything the baseball-lover could do was laugh to hide his embarrassment.

"So…" Tsuyoshi started, scratching his cheek. "You and him, huh?"

"Ha-ha, yeah…"

Cue uncomfortable silence.

"Look, Pops, I-"

"Do you love him?" The uneasy expression in the oldest Yamamoto's face was suddenly replaced by seriousness that his son only had an opportunity to see when Shigure Souen was involved.

"Of course I do! I want to be with him forever," He answered honestly without thinking twice about it.

Tsuyoshi crossed his arms and nodded. "Now, does he love you?"

Takeshi was silent. He really didn't want to answer that.

"I see," His father sighed, and the youngest Yamamoto only looked down at his lap. Tsuyoshi leaned on the table and placed both of his hands in his son's shoulders, making the latter look up. "I'm not going to interfere with you love life, Takeshi, but think about it for a second. Don't you want to spend the rest of your life with someone who loves you?"

At that, Takeshi locked gazes with his dad, half-closed his eyes and smiled genuinely. "I've thought of that a lot of times, and I've always reached to the same conclusion."

Tsuyoshi raised an eyebrow. "And that is?"

"That even if he doesn't feel the same way I do, I will always stay by his side in hopes that one day he will learn to love me too."

April 24, 2015

"Sorry, Yamamoto, but I'll be taking Kyouya with me for a while."

That's what Dino had said exactly five and a half hours ago, and Hibari still wasn't back. It's not that he was jealous of the Cavallone boss or anything...he trusted Hibari! It wasn't like he cared of how the blond touched his boyfriend so casually or how the latter never complained when his first name was used (even though whenever Yamamoto tried to call him 'Kyouya' he'd always get tonfa'd). That was normal between students and teachers, right? Like his dad! He was his teacher of the Shigure Souen Ryu and he called him by his first name…wait, that's a bad example. Um, more like…Tsuna and Reborn! Yes! Then again, though, Reborn never shows respect to the poor boy…Or Colonello and Ryohei! But the extreme teen called the Rain Arcobaleno 'Master' and the thought of Hibari calling Dino that made Yamamoto shudder.

Alright, so maybe he was a little upset of how their relationship seemed so close even though they barely saw each other now-a-days. With the Italian's looks, who wouldn't be a tad bit jealous?

So, he decided to distract himself while playing videogames with Gokudera in the latter's apartment. It surprised him how easily the bomber had agreed to it, but didn't pay much attention to it. Maybe his silver-haired friend was finally warming up to him?

Lost in his own world, he didn't notice the Storm Guardian talking quietly in the phone.

"Everything's ready? Alright! No problem, Juudaime!" He exclaimed with stars in his eyes and a small blush before he put away his phone. "Hey, baseball-idiot."

"Hm? What's wrong?" Yamamoto asked, still not taking his eyes off the screen. Gokudera felt a vein popping in his forehead as he turned off the set and the Rain Guardian pouted. "What did you do that for?"

"Shut up and come with me." The green-eyed male snapped, not bothering to look back as he left.

Yamamoto blinked, stayed still for a second, then laughed, stood up hurriedly and followed.

"Where are we going?" He asked, placing his hand inside his pockets. Gokudera just shot him an annoyed look, making the other grin and close his mouth temporarily.

He was fairly surprised when they were headed to his dad's restaurant. He opened the door with a confused expression.

"Ne, Gokudera, why are we…?"

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY YAMAMOTO!"

Taken aback, Yamamoto gaped at the scene in front of him.

All of his friends (including the Varia) were gathered around the restaurant, each of them doing their own thing. Squalo was yelling at Xanxus to help him put a signboard on the wall, Bel was checking that Fran was doing all his work by occasionally stabbing him, Kyoko and Haru were making sure there was enough food for everyone, Chrome, I-Pin, Fuuta and Bianchi were organizing the tables, Reborn was sipping tea while ordering Tsuna, Ryohei, Lambo and Basil where to move some stuff, Lussuria was looking at everything with a finger in his lips wondering where the confetti would look better before giggling and deciding to just put a little everywhere; Levi was, as always, standing by his boss's side trying to please him and failing greatly, and finally Dino was re-ordering the gifts by size (it was a good thing that Romario and some other of his subordinates had accompanied him).

Wait, Dino?

Wait again, his birthday?

"Huh?" Was the smart reply he gave to his excited-looking friends.

Somewhere in the back, Squalo yelled. "VOOOII! Brat, don't tell me you forgot your birthday!"

"Ha-ha!" Yamamoto laughed and scratched his cheek in embarrassment. He really did forget! He had been so busy lately that he lost count of the time! "Wow, guys, thanks! I wasn't expecting this!"

"So, do you like it?" Kyoko asked happily, her golden eyes shining with hope.

"He better like it, because the prince lost six hours of his precious time with these peasants to make this party." Bel said, smiling smugly.

"Even though you didn't do anything at all, fake prince-senpai." Stab.

Everyone (except for Tsuna and Xanxus) laughed at that, not entirely worrying if the knives actually caused a serious injury in the small illusionist's back.

Yamamoto then turned to face the Bucking Horse. "So, where's Hibari?"

Dino blinked twice and then made a recognizing face. "Ah! He should be somewhere here. He was the one to come up with the idea of your birthday party, after all!"

"He what?" Yamamoto's chestnut eyes widened and the blond klutz laughed awkwardly.

"Woops, I wasn't supposed to say that…"

"So, you mean to say that all this time he was with all of you…making a party for me?" That was really hard to believe.

"Yes! Hibari said that if we don't celebrate he would EXTREMELY bite us to death!" Ryohei exclaimed, raising his fist.

"It is weird, though," Gokudera observed, placing a hand in his chin with a thoughtful expression. "It seems really out of character for the bastard to do something like that."

"Oh, Hayato," Bianchi said, appearing out of nowhere in front of him. "You still have a lot to learn about love."

"A-aneki…!" The bomber fainted at the sight of his older sister's uncovered face.

"Ah! Gokudera-kun!"

"VOOOOOIII! YOU SORRY EXCUSE OF A BOSS, STAND UP AND HELP!"

Something crashed. "Shut the fuck up, scum."

"Oh no~! The signboard is ruined, Squ-chan~!"

"Hahi! This is a dangerous party, desu!"

"S-Sasagawa-dono, please refrain from jumping on the tables…!"

"Ushishishi~ Froggy, go bring the prince something to eat."

"Dead rats coming right away, Bel-senpai." Stab.

Yamamoto laughed. What a nice party! He then looked around. "Dino, where's Hibari?"

The blond passed his hand trough his hair in a tired manner. "He's with your father in the kitchen."

"My old man? Why?"

"I don't know, but it's best if you leave them alone for now," They heard something break inside said room.

Feeling somewhat uneasy, Yamamoto went to chat animatedly with his friends, who instantly added him to their conversation. Sometime later, under the entire ruckus he was able to hear the faint sound of a door closing and instantly he turned around to see his dad leaving the kitchen with a two plates of sushi.

"Who wants more sushi?" He asked, in which he received a couple of 'I do's!' from the guys. Tsuyoshi smiled warmly at his son. "Happy birthday, Takeshi."

"Thanks ,dad! Have you seen Hibari? I was told he was with you," Yamamoto said, grabbing a piece of sushi and placing it on his mouth.

The older Yamamoto chuckled knowingly. "Yes, in fact, we just finished…talking."

"About?" The Rain Guardian raised a suspicious eyebrow.

"Nothing you have to worry about," He started to walk away, but suddenly stopped and looked back at his son. "Oh, right. He said he wanted to meet you at the rooftop at the end of the party. Tsk, Takeshi, you have weird tastes on people."

Yamamoto only laughed, though he was a little anxious of what Hibari had to say to him. Organizing a party for him was extremely unexpected, so what would he have in mind now?

Not being able to contain his curiosity anymore, Yamamoto quietly snuck out of the restaurant being careful of not being noticed and went to where his father had said Hibari was: the rooftop.

"Isn't it rude to leave your own party?" Hibari asked uninterestedly, not even bothering to look at the person who just sat beside him.

"Yeah, I guess it is," Yamamoto laughed as he looked up at the dark sky. "Curiosity was killing me, though. Did you really come up with the idea?"

The skylark stayed silent for a few seconds. "You said you've always wanted one of these, didn't you?"

Blinking in surprise, Yamamoto recalled when last year he complained about him never having a surprise party and how much fun it would be if he actually had one someday in one of his future birthdays. He was stunned about his boyfriend actually remembering, for that day he seemed as if he wasn't hearing any of what Yamamoto was saying.

"You…actually were paying attention?"

"You were disturbing the peace," Hibari refused to look at him. "I was merely curious of what stupidity came across your head to have the guts to ask to get bitten to death."

Smiling widely at the other's brief show of embarrassment, Yamamoto closed the distance between them and sealed Hibari's lips with his own. It was a short-lived kiss, but it reflected perfectly what both of them were feeling.

Hugging the carnivore with only one arm, the taller male sighed contently before he suddenly remembered something. "Oh, hey, what did you and my old man were talking about?"

Hibari shot him a hasty glance. "He didn't tell you?"

"Well, if he did I wouldn't be asking you, now would I?" He laughed.

The steel-blue eyed male seemed to hesitate slightly, as if unsure of how to phrase what he was about to say. Deciding to not say anything at all, his hand found its way towards his pocket and rummaged a little before finding what he was looking for and showed it to the baseball-lover. Said guy took the object and examined it.

"A key?"

"A key."

"Um…what do I need a key for?" Chestnut eyes looked at it closer and he gasped. "Wait, isn't this your house key?"

Hibari nodded dully.

"Does this mean…?" Yamamoto gaped at the other, who still refused to face him.

Hibari nodded again more slowly, as if he was already regretting having done what he did.

Getting the party he'd always wanted and being welcomed to live with the man of his dreams were two things he was definitely not expecting for his birthday, and yet they happened. It caught him off-guard and by surprise, but he wasn't about to complain.

"Thank you so much, Kyouya!" He mentally braced himself for the swing of the Cloud Guardian's infamous weapon for calling him by his first name.

Astonishingly, the hit never came.

December 6, 2016

"Ne, Kyouya, what would you like for Christmas?"

Annoyed, said man tore his steel-blue eyes from the book he was reading and shot his cheerful boyfriend a glare.

"Silence, perhaps?"

Ignoring the hostile tone in the man's voice, he continued happily. "You know, I could give you anything you want."

"Oh, really?" Kyouya asked distractedly, not really paying attention as he focused on the paragraph he left on. "So if I asked you to stop playing baseball you would?"

"Yes."

Taken aback, Kyouya looked up at Takeshi's solemn eyes and raised an eyebrow as the latter cupped his face and kissed him long and hard.

"I would do anything for you," Takeshi whispered with a hint of an emotion Kyouya couldn't place a finger in.

"What's with your sudden revelation?" He inquired, eyeing him suspiciously.

Suddenly, the seriousness was replaced by a big grin.

"So, really, what do you want for Christmas? We could always go on a trip, jut the two of us, or maybe just stay here, or buy a reservation in-"

Kyouya dozed off in the middle of his boyfriend's rambling, too busy thinking of the other's unexpected reaction. Was he serious? Was he really that important to Takeshi for him to actually even think about leaving his most precious thing in the world?

Somehow, that thought made his heart flutter.

May 5, 2017 

There are days where Kyouya wonders just why he accepted going out with Takeshi, and even more why he was still with him after nine years. Today was exactly like one of those days; steel-blue eyes followed the tanned man's clumsy movements as he tried to mix flour with the milk, a puzzled expression in his face. Takeshi re-read the steps in the recipes book out loud and slowly to himself, trying to comprehend and memorize them before shrugging and placing three entire eggs in the bowl. Kyouya sighed.

"What are you supposed to be doing?" He asked, walking closer to his boyfriend, who jumped and laughed awkwardly.

"A chocolate cake!" The Rain Guardian answered cheerfully. Kyouya blinked at the mess of ingredients and rubbed his temples with the middle and thumb fingers of his right hand.

"Have you ever made a cake before?" He asked skeptically, more to himself than Takeshi.

"Nope!" The other said way too happily. So the guy knows how to make perfectly delicious sushi but not a simple cake?

Sighing once more, he cursed himself for leaving his tonfas at their bedroom before taking the previously thrown eggs and breaking them to place the fluid inside the recipient. He then started to mix the ingredients properly, ignoring his boyfriend's protests.

"But Kyouya, I wanted to make this for you!" He childishly whined.

The skylark glared at him. "I would not appreciate if you somehow managed to poison me with your stupidity. Now shut up and got get more flour, herbivore."

Takeshi pouted but complied.

Hours later, the chocolate cake was finally finished. Kyouya eyed the dessert carefully, looking for even the smallest mistake before nodding approvingly. He turned around to leave, but Takeshi caught his hand.

"Aren't you going to eat it with me?"

"No."

"Aren't you even going to ask why I was making this cake?"

"No." _But you are going to tell me anyway, _he thought, ignoring the urge to roll his eyes.

Takeshi's chestnut eyes closed and he smiled. "It's because I love you!"

There it was. Whenever he did something 'special' for his boyfriend, he would always respond the same way. Kyouya has heard it millions of times before, so he really doesn't know why his lips always curled up slightly at that simple phrase.

Suddenly, though, Takeshi's eyes shined mischievously and a rare smirk appeared on his face, making his scarred face look more mature.

"You have some chocolate here~." He said, starting to lick the skylark's earlobe.

Kyouya then remembered why he always stayed with Takeshi; the carnivore inside him seemed to come out at the most unexpected moments, leaving no trail behind of the annoying, weak herbivore it always seems to be. It was fascinating in a strange way, and he felt the need to see more of it. The normal Takeshi wasn't bad at all either; somehow, he had found a way to worm inside the solitaire Vongola Guardian's heart with his usual stupid and wide grin, but for some unknown reason he didn't care anymore.

And right now as Takeshi threw Kyouya in the kitchen table before positioning himself on top of him and stared to devour his neck with open-mouthed kisses, the latter couldn't shake off the feeling that the chocolate cake wasn't going to be eaten anytime soon.

October 11, 2018

Of all the things Kyouya expected to see when he arrived home, Takeshi gripping the phone so tightly his knuckles turned white as if his life depended on it was not in the list.

Frowning, the older man brusquely took the phone away from the other's hand with some effort before placing it in his ear.

"What is it?" He asked coldly, eyeing Takeshi's pale figure.

"Ah!" The other person gasped, clearly surprised. "Hibari-san!"

"Sawada Tsunayoshi, _what is it?_" Kyouya repeated, clearly irritated.

The Tenth stayed silent for some time before speaking quietly, "The Millefiore unexpectedly attacked Takezushi and destroyed everything in it…unfortunately, Yamamoto's dad was present at the moment…we were too late."

The Cloud Guardian hung up soon after Tsuna revealed that information and tossed the phone aside carelessly. His eyes looked for Takeshi's, which were hidden behind black bangs before grabbing his tonfas and Vongola Box Weapon and walked to the front door.

Kyouya was mad. With what, he wasn't sure. Maybe it was the way his lover was acting right now; maybe he was mad at the Millefiore for taking away something so important for Takeshi, or maybe at his boss for not being fast enough to aid the oldest Yamamoto. He did know, however, that he had to do something about it.

"Where…" He heard a weak voice behind him, "are you going?"

Kyouya glanced over his shoulder with his usual solemn expression in his face, but his eyes had a murderous spark in them.

"To bite some Millefiore people to death."

With that, the strongest Vongola Guardian left with no intention of sparing any lives. They have, after all, been interrupting the peace in Namimori lately. Not that he was doing it to avenge Tsuyoshi's death; although he approved of him, the old man never played a big part in his life, but he did in Takeshi's.

And he was not going to have any mercy on those who dared to hurt something that was his.

November 19, 2019

"Not good…" Yamamoto said as he dodged yet another bullet from his numerous enemies and slashed one of them with his Shigure Kintoki.

This was supposed to be a rather simple mission; all he had to do was refuse the negotiations with another Family and then leave, but when he tried to do so they started to attack him.

He had taken out more than a half of them, but they surprised him by using guns, and not with normal bullets, either. Those were a special type of bullet that absorbed flames, making the victim unable to use them. Yamamoto had no more option than use only his sword without the help of Jirou and Koujirou. It wouldn't have been a difficult task if he hadn't been hit by two of those bullets in his left shoulder and the right lower part of his stomach, of course. Then again, the blood that never ceased to leave the wounds in large quantities was also part of that problem.

Yamamoto's vision started to blur as he breathed slowly and heavily, but he never stopped fighting. He couldn't let down his friends! He couldn't lose here! He had to go home safely to see his lover!

The last thing he saw before feeling a sharp pain in the back of his head were the furious eyes of Hibari Kyouya looking down at him with a hint of concern.

July 30, 2020

"I have both good and bad news for you." The doctor said with a tired smile that did not reach his old, knowing eyes.

"Doctor! How's Yamamoto doing?" The Vongola's Tenth boss asked urgently, trying to maintain his calm as his hand was being held by his right-hand man with the intention of giving comfort.

"Tell us the good news first," Gokudera demanded, looking for a reason to ease his beloved boss's anxiety.

The doctor nodded. "The surgery was a success; we were able to take the out bullets and cure the injuries. In other words, Yamamoto-san's body is in no more danger."

Lambo released a shaky and relieved sigh while Ryohei relaxed his muscles. Both the Thunder and Sun Guardians had been unknowingly holding their breath. Tsuna's tense pose, however, didn't waver. He had a bad feeling that had been eating him ever since he asked Hibari to go aid Yamamoto in his mission, and it still didn't go away even with the newly given information.

"Um…what about the bad news?" The female Mist Guardian asked quietly, mirroring her boss's thoughts.

The doctor took off his glasses and looked at each of them with sympathy, stopping his dark gaze on Hibari, who behind his indifferent demeanor was panicking.

"The blow to his head was too strong; I am deeply sorry to inform you that, after doing various tests, Yamamoto Takeshi was confirmed to be brain dead."

The doctor's words echoed Hibari's head over and over again perfectly even after it has been eight months since that incident; he had never felt so helpless in his life. Tsuna had told him that he feared something was wrong with the mission he gave Yamamoto, so he sent him to go see if everything was alright. Granted, it wasn't. By the time he arrived it was too late; Yamamoto had a hemorrhage from the two bullets buried deep inside of him, he was unable to use his flames and also received a hit to his skull with a metal pole. Needless to say, none of the enemies survived after that.

His eyes stayed glued to one of the many pictures of the man that had asked him out twelve years ago, remembering the goofy and oblivious smile that always decorated his face. True, as time went on, Yamamoto had lost a great part of that spark in his eyes, but his smile stayed strong. Maybe that's what he found so interesting in him; he had known that behind that sheep's appearance Takeshi was a wolf waiting for the right moment to strike, but even in those moments he did not let himself being brain-washed by the power he knew he held. He was too soft, but that was also a part of his charm, he guessed.

Yamamoto used to be so full of life, and now…

Closing his eyes, he remembered what his devastated boss had told him.

"It's your choice, Hibari-san," Tsunayoshi had said, his saddened caramel eyes looking deeply up at his own. "We won't hold any grudges by your decision."

Kyouya, being Yamamoto's lover, had been given the choice of disconnecting the oxygen cable that kept him 'alive' or leaving it be, giving him a pointless artificial life. He knew that letting him go was the best choice, but he didn't know if he was ready to do so. Takeshi, after all, had been the only one who climbed up the walls of his cold heart, the only one that wasn't afraid of him, the only one who accepted him for who he was…

No, he would get better. He _had_ to.

Even he knew that if the brain was dead, the whole person was too, even if their heart was still beating and their organs functioning. But Yamamoto was strong, he would somehow open his bright chestnut eyes and laugh in that stupid way only he knew how to and shamelessly exclaim how much he loved him in front of others only to receive a blow from his lover's tonfas, right?

With that thought in mind, Hibari sat by the phone, waiting for Yamamoto's call to pick him up from the hospital. Staring at the black object, he did nothing but breathe slowly and deeply, his mind invaded by thoughts.

Then he felt his presence outside their house.

Hibari's heart skipped a beat before resuming its pace in a faster way. It was Takeshi, he was sure of it! He could recognize that feeling everywhere. Kyouya stood up and walked to the entrance before opening the door, his heart pounding loudly in his ears…

…only to find the rain.

With a painful feeling in his heart, he stayed there standing right outside the house, letting the rare summer rain fall gently on him. Somehow, as the water soaked his clothes, he felt as if Takeshi was there, embracing him in his usual gentle way. The drops falling one after another quickly to the ground almost sounded like his voice whispering sweet nothings in his ear.

So, as he saw the rain falling down mercilessly, washing everything away, Kyouya took his decision.

He was going to ask the doctors to disconnect the cable, because even if Takeshi's heart was still beating, the Rain Guardian was long gone.

"_Don't worry; you'll love me too sooner or later. Just wait!"_

Kyouya remembers himself denying it, but his lips curled up sourly at that memory. In the end, Takeshi had been right; he never admitted it, of course, but he did. He had been too coward, too scared that if he told him, he would become a weak herbivore. Now it was too late, though.

Never once he had said it out loud, but the words left his mouth in a pained whisper before he could stop himself. And, for a moment, as quick as the rain kept falling to the ground, he thought he heard a small voice for a second.

_"I know."_

As Kyouya made his way to Namimori Hospital, he was trying to convince himself that the water dripping down his cheeks weren't tears under the rain.

* * *

**I killed Yamamoto in my birth date, LOL. Wait, I shouldn't be laughing xD Many thanks to my awesome beta, Sarcastic Apple, who corrected my unforgivable errors and typos and blah blah.**

**With this fic over, now I'll finally be able to continue with the B80 one I was doing (O.o) and that one of 8018 with Alaude/Ugetsu (once again, O.o)**

**Review, anyone? *Puppy eyes***


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